Independent Quality Assurance and Control Department
In every manufacturing company, the quality of manufactured products is the most important thing. It is necessary that there is an independent Quality Assurance and Control Department inside the company. Its task is to guarantee the compliance of our activities with international and internal quality standards. The main task of Quality Assurance and Control Department is to supervise critical parameters in the entire production process, from the supervision of the supplied raw materials to the release of the product ready for shipment.
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Quality control at every stage
Our motto is to provide safe and top quality products. In order to identify possible errors in production as soon as possible and minimize further costs of poor quality, packaging is verified at every stage of production. Inter-process control allows us to react quickly in the event of errors. The basic stages of verification include:
- control of input materials,
- inter-operational control – IPC,
- final inspection of finished products.
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Full traceability
By producing packaging for pharmaceuticals and cosmetics, we guarantee full traceability of production. We rely on a system that allows us to track the history of product implementation. The products are properly secured and labeled with pharmacodes. If a complaint is filed or an error is detected, we will quickly verify which products it concerns and follow the implementation of individual stages of the production process.
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Certified suppliers only
Before we start cooperation with a new business partner, each supplier is qualified and subjected to quality assessment by our internal Quality Assurance and Control Department. We must be sure that our Partner is trustworthy and provides the highest quality of services.
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We certify the quality of our products with a quality certificate
The quality certificate is issued to Preston Packaging customers on request, when the product meets all the requirements of the product specification. The goods are released by an independent Quality Assurance and Control Department after the last stage of verification.
Everything is in right place
An important aspect of the production activity is to ensure order and appropriate marking of places in the production hall. To keep order and not to confuse orders, appropriate zones are separated in the production part to help us in our daily work. Thanks to this, we save time and minimize the risk of a mistake.
Thanks to the involvement of the employees of the Quality Assurance and Control Department, we implemented the 5S-method. Five Japanese words beginning with the letter S symbolize the 5-step operating style:
Seiri – sorting or segregation,
Seiton – systematics,
Seiso – cleaning,
Seiketsu – standardization,
Shitsuke – self-discipline.
The 5S method is a tool that is very often used in the lean management. Its main goal is to create and maintain a well-organized and safe workplace. Thanks to the introduced changes, we will increase the efficiency of the organization and optimize the processes taking place in it.
Standards are paramount
One of the tasks of the Quality Assurance and Control Department is to standardize our work and to introduce and supervise procedures that directly affect the highest quality of our production.
In order to maintain the highest quality and safety of the products and to prevent the products from mixing, we use the line clean procedure. This means that we do not combine orders for security reasons. After each project, the workplace is thoroughly cleaned, which is confirmed in the production documentation.
Another important aspect of preventing a possible mixing of orders is the security in the form of a pharmacode. Each package has a pharmacode printed on it, which is verified at the entrance of the folder-gluer machine, which ensures that the orders are not mixed up during the production processes. If, for any reason, the orders are mixed up, the machine equipped with a pharmacode reader will detect the error and reject the incompatible packaging.
The EAN is a standardized barcode and is placed on all sales packages. The foundation of the GS1 System is the agreed principles of international identification, which led to the development of a set of unique global GS1 Identifiers. Good quality of barcodes on packaging is one of the important aspects in production. Meeting the quality requirements in terms of compliance with ISO and GS1 standards allows us to avoid financial losses and delays. At Preston Packaging, EAN barcodes are compliant with the GS1 standard. To verify the codes, we use the REA ScanCheck 3 verifier, which operates in accordance with the applicable ISO / IEC 15416 standards. The verification is carried out in accordance with the GS1 standard. This is about our professional approach to ensuring the highest quality of manufactured products.
The raw material used for production must be stored in appropriate conditions. The production of packaging must also take place under certain conditions, which is why we apply the principle of conditioning raw materials for 48 hours. In the production plant hytherographs are installed for measuring and recording temperature and humidity. Any deviation from the norm causes immediate actions to be taken that will improve the indicators. Monitoring of temperature and humidity allows us to keep the raw material in proper condition during storage and the production process. The entire production hall is also air-conditioned, which additionally improves the comfort of our employees.
Our printing house is considered by customers and auditors to be one of the cleanest in Poland. We owe this to the strict standards we have set for ourselves in order to maintain cleanliness. Our company has a Hygiene and Cleaning Program. The purpose of the instructions is to ensure that the quality of the products is not compromised. In this way, we ensure that the products are manufactured under safe conditions, i.e. in a controlled, hygienic way.
Own Laboratory
An important aspect that has a positive impact on ensuring high-quality packaging is our own laboratory. Control and measurement equipment is supervised (calibration, adjustment). Measuring instruments are used for the quality control of input products, raw materials, inter-operational control, as well as quality control when releasing products.
Technology is helpful for high quality
At Preston Packaging we constantly invest in modern machinery, software and the development of production technology. Automation not only speeds up processes but also allows us to minimize the risk of errors. We work on printing machines from a reputable manufacturer that are equipped with print control technologies.
The spectral measurement system Prinect Inpress Control examines print fully automatically and without operator intervention. The color deviation ΔE is continuously displayed and adjusted without drawing sheets. In this way, we achieve unrivaled production speeds and reduce working time. If something deviates from the norm, we will definitely catch it.
The second system, Prinect Inspection Control on our Heidelberg 106 XL printing machine, ensures the highest efficiency in terms of sheet inspection. During production control the system continuously compares the printed sheets with the created “digital reference card”. Two high-resolution cameras fully check each sheet in print. This allows misprints to be detected during production and prevents further costs. Especially in the case of packaging for the pharmaceutical industry, where the safety of the end customer is important, the content on the finished packaging must be consistent with the file provided by the manufacturer.
We strive to ensure the highest quality at every stage of production. Possible errors should be identified at an early stage in order to meet the growing requirements of customers in the pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries.
Ecology is our responsibility
The packaging production process is always associated with the waste generated. Our goal for this year is to prepare files for implementation in such a way as to minimize production waste as much as possible.
Our activities include an in-depth waste paper segregation system into three fractions. From the moment we implemented this division, our employees, apart from the fact that they themselves willingly apply it, also often watch each other so as not to make mistakes in segregation. It is very encouraging to see how people engage in caring for the environment. The waste generated during the process is disposed of in the press-container, thanks to which we prevent the misuse of production waste.
How do we educate the team to cooperate in accordance with the set standards?
Introducing procedures and standards is not enough. It is also necessary to explain to the Employees the legitimacy of complying with the set standards and continuous education in this regard. Only in this way can we guarantee the highest quality of our products. Therefore, Preston Packaging holds regular quality meetings with production employees, explaining the issues affecting the quality of the manufactured packaging. We also conduct training to remind you of the applicable standards so that your knowledge is consolidated.
SUMMARY
The quality of production is a very important aspect that should be guided by every production company. We operate in many areas to guarantee our partners a safe packaging production process. The entire team is committed to achieving this goal. We all understand the essence of the highest quality products in the production of packaging and leaflets. We create a new quality in printing. Quality reinvented – that’s Preston Packaging.
